Ion draws a crowd
More than 2,000 residents line up to see first LRT train
WATERLOO REGION — The light rail train known as 501B had the starring role Saturday as thousands of curious residents waited in line for a close look at the future of public transit.
They started lining up an hour before the doors opened at 1 p.m.
By mid-afternoon the line snaked for more than 200 metres outside the region’s storage and maintenance building on Dutton Drive.
The suburban cul-de-sac in North Waterloo was choked with parked vehicles, and people eager to see the blue-and-white train — the first of 14 Ion trains to arrive in this region.
Kate Urquhart was among the 2,670 people who lined up for a chance to see and walk through the train.
She moved to Waterloo just before construction started on the LRT system. Urquhart came from Midland, which has two buses, and she never rode public transit in the past.
But after walking through 501B at the open house, Urquhart can see herself using the trains when the LRT system is running next spring.
“I think it will be cool,” said Urquhart. “I live Uptown so if I am going to one of the malls or downtown it looks like it will be really easy to hop on and off one of the trains.”
Chris Klein of Kitchener arrived at about 2:30 p.m. and waited in line for nearly an hour.
“There were a lot more people there than I think anyone was expecting,” said Klein, who walked through the shiny, new train.
“It looked pretty sharp, it was nice to finally see it,” said Klein. “I was excited. I think a lot of other people were excited to see it too.”
Like many others who attended the event, Klein was surprised the train is so big.
His enthusiastic reaction is just what the region wanted — to maintain and build support for the biggest infrastructure project in the area’s history.
“It all feels a lot more real, and I think that’s what has people really interested,” said Klein.
“People now want to see: ‘What are we getting for our money? What is this thing going to look like?’” said Klein.
Mike Boos arrived with his two small children just before the line started moving. Boos is a longtime supporter of the project, and he was excited to see the train.
“People were quite wowed by the size, how much space there is,” said Boos.
He was also surprised by the size of the crowd.
“I think that says a lot about the excitement that is building in the region,” said Boos. “I think it is a significant milestone to have our first light rail vehicle here.”
It was gratifying for Regional Chair Ken Seiling, who has long championed light rail transit, to see 2,670 people come out Saturday for a look at train.
“We want the public to see what we are seeing here, and get a sense of it,” said Seiling.
“They are seeing the construction being finished up, now they get to see one of the trains close up, and they will get a sense of what is coming down the road,” said Seiling.
The Ion system is scheduled to be running next spring. The region takes delivery of the next light rail train in June or early July. Every 15 days after that Bombardier will ship another one to the region. In all, Ion will have 14 light trains. That means 12 can be in service at any one time, and two in the shop for maintenance.
Bombardier says it will deliver all of the vehicles by year’s end.
While the region waits for the trains to arrive, the public education campaign will be rolled out and continue for the next year.
“It will require a change in driving habits in the core areas,” said Seiling. “And people need to get used to the trains being on the streets.”
For regular riders on Grand River Transit buses, train 501B is an impressive site. It has five modules connected by accordionlike sections so it can easily make sharp turns. It is about 30 metres long, and weights 30 tonnes. It will carry up to 200 passengers — 56 seated and 144 standing.
It is also bidirectional, meaning drivers can operate the train from either end. With a top speed of 88 km/h, the train can move quickly along empty stretches of track. Mostly though it will run at 30 to 50 km/h.
In about a month 501B will be running along the LRT line in Waterloo between Northfield Drive and Silver Lake. The tracks, signals, gates, lights, overhead electrical lines and on-board computers all need extensive testing. Each new train needs about 200 hours of test runs, what is called “burning in,” before it is ready for service.
“They do have the ability to change red light signals ahead, they can control all of that,” said Regional Coun. Tom Galloway,
who chairs the planning and works committee.
“So they do have priority over all those intersections,” said Galloway.
The heavy but quiet trains will run at eight-minute intervals along the Ion tracks. Drivers, pedestrians and cyclists need to be extra careful around the tracks. Contact with the overhead wires would likely be fatal.
“The safety program we are starting now because it will only be a month or so before this one is out on the test track,” said Galloway.
The public education campaign will stress how quietly the trains run. This is not a belching and grinding behemoth that grinds its way through the cities. Regional Coun. Geoff Lorentz has watched light-trail trains in Seville, Spain, and in Istanbul, Turkey.
“A silent train, it just kind of slides by,” said Lorentz.
The open house was a public relations boost for ION. After two years of construction, and another year before the system is running, the public tours gave many residents their first real look at what all the planning and work was about.
They checked out the drivers’ seats, the on-board bike racks and articulated design. They posed for pictures in front of the train, and took selfies inside.
“It is a good day, great day,” said Regional Coun. Sean Strickland.
“The car looks great, the public is very happy.”